This is just a sampling of the criminal, often violent activities engaged in by Mara Salvatrucha, otherwise known as MS-13; a vicious, brutal El Salvadoran street gang now firmly rooted in the U.S.

MS-13 was formed in Los Angeles in the late 1970s by El Salvadorans fleeing their own country’s civil war. Today, there are an estimated 30,000-50,000 MS-13 gang members, having spread from LA into nearly every state in the U.S., and throughout Central and South America.

The horrific violence waged by MS-13 in El Salvador has become so bad that El Salvadoran police officers are fleeing their own country and seeking asylum in the U.S., fearing for their lives and the lives of their families.